LAUGH, OR CRY?

“Heraclitus would shed tears whenever he went out in public—Democritus laughed. One saw the

whole as a parade of miseries, the other of follies. And so, we should take a lighter view of

things and bear them with an easy spirit, for it is more human to laugh at life than to lament it.” —SENECA, ON TRANQUILITY OF MIND, 15.2

Is this observation the origin of that famous expression about frustrating news: “I don’t know whether to laugh or cry?” The Stoics saw little purpose in getting angry or sad about things that are indifferent to our feelings. Especially when those feelings end up making us feel worse.

It’s also another bit of evidence that the Stoics were hardly some depressing, bitter group of old men. Even when things were really bad, when the world made them want to weep in despair or rage, they chose to laugh about it.

Like Democritus, we can make that same choice. There is more humor than hate to be found in just about every situation. And at least humor is productive—making things less heavy, not more so.

DON’T BE MISERABLE IN ADVANCE

“It’s ruinous for the soul to be anxious about the future and miserable in advance of misery, engulfed by anxiety that the things it desires might remain its own until the very end. For such a soul will never be at rest—by longing for things to come it will lose the ability to enjoy present things.”

—SENECA, MORAL LETTERS, 98.5b–6a

The way we nervously worry about some looming bad news is strange if you think about it. By definition, the waiting means it hasn’t happened yet, so that feeling bad in advance is totally voluntary. But that’s what we do: chewing our nails, feeling sick to our stomachs, rudely brushing aside the people around us. Why? Because something bad might occur soon.

The pragmatist, the person of action, is too busy to waste time on such silliness. The pragmatist can’t worry about every possible outcome in advance. Think about it. Best case scenario—if the news turns out to be better than expected, all this time was wasted with needless fear. Worst case scenario—we were miserable for extra time, by choice.

And what better use could you make of that time? A day that could be your last—you want to spend it in worry? In what other area could you make some progress while others might be sitting on the edges of their seat, passively awaiting some fate?

Let the news come when it does. Be too busy working to care.

WORK IS THERAPY

  “Work nourishes noble minds.”

You know that feeling you get when you haven’t been to the gym in a few days? A bit doughy. Irritable. Claustrophobic. Uncertain. Others get a similar feeling when they’ve been on vacation for too long or right after they first retire. The mind and the body are there to be used—they begin to turn on themselves when not put to some productive end.

It’s sad to think that this kind of frustration is an everyday reality for a lot of people. They leave so much of their potential unfulfilled because they have jobs where they don’t really do much or because they have too much time on their hands. Worse is when we try to push these feelings away by buying things, going out, fighting, creating drama—indulging in the empty calories of existence instead of finding the real nourishment.

The solution is simple and, thankfully, always right at hand. Get out there and work.

Favouritism ♥️

Is omnipresent , it is - and all theories wronged , Define it as rare but beautiful ~ privileged ~

Good Day. 

 luv kavi ♥️

The Guilt trip

d things that wud not need any consent , the frank part of the statement not said but loud throughout- the stick and the frustration both ! 

the casual, the drift , the drama . 

Random - kavi ♥️

STICK WITH JUST THE FACTS

“Don’t tell yourself anything more than what the initial impressions report. It’s been reported to

you that someone is speaking badly about you. This is the report—the report wasn’t that you’ve

been harmed. I see that my son is sick—but not that his life is at risk. So always stay within your

first impressions, and don’t add to them in your head—this way nothing can happen to you.” —MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 8.49

At first, this can seem like the opposite of everything you’ve been taught. Don’t we cultivate our minds and critical thinking skills precisely so we don’t simply accept things at face value? Yes, most of the time. But sometimes this approach can be counterproductive.

What a philosopher also has is the ability, as Nietzsche put it, “to stop courageously, at the surface” and see things in plain, objective form. Nothing more, nothing less. Yes, Stoics were “superficial,” he said, “out of profundity.” Today, while other people are getting carried away, that’s what you’re going to practice. A kind of straightforward pragmatism—seeing things as their initial impressions make them

Warmth of the captivating gestures !

 Captive ‘ to rawness . d story behind and d story further… from nice to Cupid